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Parking limits adjusted

By Lisa Neff, Islander Reporter

New signs are up on Bridge Street, where the city has adjusted its parking restrictions.

The Bradenton Beach City Commission unanimously voted last month to set a three-hour limit on public spaces on Bridge Street and put the enforcement period from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. The prior limit was two hours.

Parking in the area has long been an issue. Over the years, business owners and city officials have considered a variety of ways to expand parking opportunities or reduce the need for parking spaces.

Most recently the focus has been on reconfiguring city-owned property between Highland and Church avenues to provide more public parking spaces, probably for employees in the area, and creating a park-and-ride shuttle system from Cortez and Coquina beaches to Bridge Street.

Additionally, city officials and members of the Bridge Street Merchants have discussed stepping up enforcement of public parking regulations on Bridge Street, while increasing the time limit.

The commission, in addition to adjusting the time limits, instructed the police department to “issue citations to any person parking on Bridge Street in excess of three hours.”